A Not-So Happy Ending
by NewMusic098
Summary: In the end, everyone dies... NaLu, GruVia, GaLe, JerZa, AshLi (OC) WARNING! OCs! Slight Gore, Major Character Deaths for later chapters. Read at your own risk. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. I do not gain profit from his works... :D
1. Night Gone Wrong

**Warning!** _Major Character Deaths; Original Characters; Slight Gore; Not for the faint of heart… Of course, this is all for later chapters… XD_

_A/N: Okay, so I started this now because I'm home on a school day and I'm bored out of my mind. I was continuing "After School Fun" and "Me and Fairy Tail", but I don't know how to write GaLe (spoiler alert!). So I've decided to start this now. XD Everyone here, -except for JerZa and AshLi(OCs)-, are canon, so they can get lovey-dovey~ XD Enjoy (or not)~!_

_PS. If any one of you is willing to help me write a GaLe for either story, I'd be extremely grateful! :3 So, without further ado, let's begin!_

* * *

_**A Fairy Tail Fan Fiction**_

_Written by NewMusic098_

**A Not-So Happy Ending**

**Chapter 1:**

**Night Gone Wrong**

It was near sunset in the city of Magnolia, the sun's red-orange rays painting the sky beautifully as the stars start to unveil themselves within the darkness. The city's activity decreases as people from all over start to pack up and close for the night. Civilians saying their goodbyes and 'see you tomorrow's to each other as they went back to their respective households, some having children clinging to their hands. At night, people were supposed to be heading back to their houses, not the other way around.

But tonight, a specific guild was holding a special party for a specific blonde. It was July 1st, and was Lucy Heartfilia's birthday. Right now she was walking to the guild by the riverbank, balancing herself so she wouldn't fall off.

"Be careful there, Miss!" a passing boatman called.

"I will!" Lucy nodded without looking at the person.

She was just so giddy that she could spend her birthday with friends, or more accurately, _nakama_. At first, she denied the idea of having a party at the guild because it'll be too much trouble for them all. But through the persistence of her friends, plus the plan that Erza and Mira already made, she finally accepted it. Now she was thinking why she wanted to decline in the first place. This was an exciting event for her and her friends, but despite it being her birthday, everyone else was more excited than her.

_'Those guys…'_ Lucy thought to herself. They seriously keep finding ways to make her cry tears of joy. Especially now, and she was glad for that. She wiped a tear that ran down her cheek quickly before raising her head, already finding herself a few steps away from her beloved guild. When she opened the wooden doors of the building, she was half-expecting confetti flying everywhere and a giant banner sign with a 'Happy Birthday, Lucy!' written on it. And when she stepped inside, they did have what she thought, but that didn't stop her from getting surprised. Especially the popping sounds she heard and the confetti suddenly raining down on her.

"Happy Birthday, Lucy…!" the crowd of mages cheered.

Lucy was greeted with smiling faces and giddy friends. She saw everyone's faces and recognized them all as her closest friends. Natsu was there, an arm slung on Gray's shoulder as both of them laughed in excitement while Mira and Lisanna brought out a two-foot tall chocolate cake decorated with vanilla icing. Levy was the first to come to her and give her a big hug before going back to her boyfriend, Gajeel. She smiled at the two and waved at them. As she continued to walk inside, she spotted Erza and Juvia by the bar table arranging cups. She was also thoroughly surprised when she saw Jellal bringing some juice mix to the two. She didn't mind having him here, but the last time they saw each other was during the Grand Magic Games. Shrugging, she continued to journey down to the center of the guild, where Lina and Ashton were to be found arguing over something again. Lina was shouting as the blue-haired man covered his ears and looked away, seemingly bored.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Lucy interrupted them. The brunette stopped herself from yelling something and whipped her head to meet the honey-brown eyes of the blonde. Almost instantly, her eyes welled up with tears before running towards Lucy.

"Lucy-chan~!" she exclaimed. Startled, the blonde jolted back a little, but was pulled into a power-hug as the brunette wailed.

"Lucy-chan, I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry…!" she repeated. The blonde patted her back while awkwardly trying to comfort her.

"I-it's okay…" she stuttered out. "W-what's wrong, anyway?" At that, Lina pulled away from the hug, wiped a few of her tears then, glared at the man sitting there like nothing was happening.

"It's his fault!" she said as she pointed an accusing finger at Ashton. "Because of him, I left your present at home!"

"Don't blame me," he responded as he put his hands up in false surrender. "It's your fault for forgetting about it in the first place."

"I didn't forget about it, you distracted me!" she defended.

"Kissing you on the cheek wasn't a distraction…" He smirked when Lina blushed faintly. "In fact, that wasn't even a diversion. If you want a _real_ distraction, well…" He trailed off, his purple eyes sizing the brunette up as he examined her from head to toe. Her blush grew deeper not only from the scrutinizing eyes, but when Ashton licked his lips enticingly and formed a smirk. Even Lucy had to blush a little bit at their interaction and decided to stop it by faking a cough.

"A-any who," the blonde said awkwardly. "Lina-chan, it's alright. We can get it later if you want."

"O-okay…" the brunette said as she steered her eyes away from Ashton, but not before sticking her tongue out and glaring at the man.

"Perverted creep…" she muttered. Ashton shrugged casually, not even bothering to take that as an insult. Lina and Lucy left Ashton by the bar and made their way towards Gray, Natsu, Lisanna and Mira. The Strauss sisters were warning the two men to stay clear from the cake until its cut or they'll face the consequences.

"Hey guys," Lucy called. "Gray, Natsu, what are you doing?" Both men in question stopped trying to get their hands on the cake and looked at Lucy. Natsu was the first to react and ran to Lucy.

"Lucy!" he exclaimed childishly. "Happy Birthday…!" He tackled Lucy in a tight hug, causing them to fall to the ground and for Lina to step aside to give them some room.

"Idiot…" Gray sighed with a smile. Lisanna, who was the one stopping them from getting near the cake, nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Lucy was trying her best not to get suffocated by her pink-haired boyfriend's hug.

"N-Natsu…" she gasped. "I-I can't… breathe!" At that, he let the blonde go and helped her sit up. He grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck, before leaning closer and giving Lucy a quick kiss in the nose.

"Sorry," he whispered. "I was just happy to see you…"

"I know," Lucy nodded. She smiled and stole a quick kiss on his cheek before saying, "I'm happy to see you, too." Natsu formed his usual toothy grin before standing up. He held a hand out to Lucy, which she greatly accepted and she stood up.

"Everyone, don't get too excited now," Mira chimed in. "The fun's just about to start! So let's say we get the festivities underway?"

"Okay!" Lucy cheered. Everyone nodded and cheered after her.

* * *

Mira called everyone to the center of the guild, announcing that they'll start the party now. When everyone agreed, everything went to full blast. Mira and Gajeel were at the stage performing songs, sometimes duets. Occasionally, the guys would get into fights, especially when they insult Gajeel's singing voice. The girls would just laugh along with their antics and just watch them, but stopped them when they were about to destroy a couple of things. Erza had to reprimand them and told them that they were only a few close inches away from destroying the two-foot cake that she, Mira and Lisanna had worked so hard on.

_"If that cake gets damaged, I'll rip you to shreds!" _Erza's words kept ringing in their ears. It serves as a warning to them if they ever started another fight. The rest of the night was pure and uninterrupted fun. They played 'Pin-the-tail-on-the-Happy', and Lucy was the only one who got it right. Lina purposely went the other way and poked Ashton instead. Levy was too short to reach the poster, so she couldn't participate.

When they finished that game, Mira called them up again.

"Alright everyone," she clapped her hands. "We're going to play another game. This one's my favorite…" she giggled.

"Ooh, what is it?" Lina asked. A smile of excitement was present in her face.

"I better get to play this time," Levy muttered with a pout.

"Everyone gets to play this one!" Mira exclaimed. "This is why it's my favorite. It's called 'Paper Dance', and I need you guys to pair up, please. A guy and a girl should be partners, okay?" As soon as she said that, Natsu had dashed towards Lucy and took her hand and raised it up.

"First!" he exclaimed triumphantly. "Lucy and I are always partners!" Lucy blushed a little from the statement, but nodded either way. Everyone chuckled at them before going to their respective partners.

"Let's do our best, okay Juvia?" Gray shook his fist in the air a little to signal willpower. The rain woman smiled brightly at the raven-haired ice user and nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course, Gray-sama!" Juvia exclaimed. Jellal and Erza were awkwardly side-stepping towards each other, their face beetroot red. No one bothered to pick Erza or Jellal as a partner because those will automatically choose each other anyway. Gajeel and Levy were stuck with each other, and no way in hell would Gajeel consider leaving Levy alone. Lina had the misfortune of being stuck with Ashton, because Mira specifically told them that they needed a boy and a girl to be partners.

"I can't believe I'm stuck with you…" Lina muttered as Ashton closed in on her.

"Don't be like that," the man said. "You should be proud that someone's brave enough to go near you after doing this." Lina was about to ask what he meant when she felt a slight sting on her derriere. Her face became beetroot as Ashton laughed at her reaction. But it didn't last long when a hand slapped Ashton's face.

"Pervert!" she sneered. The blue-haired teen chuckled again as he rubbed his cheek. He slung an arm around the girl's shoulder and just smirked.

"Yeah, I am." He said smugly. Still blushing, Lina glared at him before looking away, but not pulling away from him. Mira watched from the stage the interactions of the couples and smiled knowingly.

_'This is perfect!' _Mira thought. _'This game would surely help in strengthening their relationship!'_ A few seconds later, her young sibling approached her and smiled.

"Mira-nee, the preparations are done." She said. "Should we start the game now?"

"Of course we should!" Mira exclaimed. Lisanna chuckled. Both she and Mira smiled before going down the stage.

With the help of Lisanna, they placed an array of wide sheets of newspaper down on the floor, ushering each pair to step inside. Natsu and Lucy, being the enthusiastic pair that they were, took the first spot. Gray and Juvia were next, followed by Erza and Jellal. The two were still awkward with each other, but not as much as they did before. Gajeel and Levy took the spot in the middle, much to Levy's embarrassment.

"Gajeel," Levy moaned. "Why do we have to be in the middle?"

"Because we're going to win, that's why!" Gajeel said as he struck his chest with his hand. "We ain't losin' to a bunch of pathetic idiots!"

"Say that again, metal-freak!" Both Gray and Natsu turned to glare at the long-haired dragon slayer, who was grinning maniacally at them.

"Is that a challenge?" Erza asked calmly, returning to her confident and battle-ready self. Jellal just smirked at their bickering, not bothering to get involved. Ashton was still distracted at teasing the helpless brunette about their being together, so he wasn't about to complain.

"All right," Mira interrupted them with a clap of her hands. "The rules of this game are simple. Each pair would dance to a song without stepping out of the newspaper. When the music stops, the guys will carry the girls and stand on one leg for five seconds!"

"After each pause," Lisanna adds. "The girls would fold the newspaper a little before we begin again, okay?"

"Sounds easy enough," Gajeel commented. A sudden flash of light interrupted them, and when they looked to find the source, Erza had her magic change her outfit to accommodate herself to the game. She just removed her armor, which was the heaviest of all her clothes so Jellal wouldn't have a hard time balancing himself.

Everyone started to chuckle, not as Erza's outfit, no. It was Jellal's slight look of disappointment that made them chuckle.

_'I guess he must be expecting something else…'_ Mira thought to herself. Smiling to herself, she begins to walk up the stage again. Before she got up, she grabbed a recorder lacrima crystal that had a recorded song in it all ready for the game.

"All set?" she asked them all when she was at the stage. With the nodding heads and the readying dance positions, she applied a little bit of magic to the lacrima, and it shined white before starting to play the recorded song. Everyone began to dance the usual ballroom dance. Occasionally, just to show off, some almost went outside the lines, specifically Lucy since she was being thrown like paperweight by her pink-haired partner.

"N-N-Natsu…!" she exclaimed as she was spun for the third time. "Stop it…! I'm going… I'm going to hurl!"

"What?" Natsu asked innocently. "I can't hear you Lucy! What did you say?"

"I…said…!"

She never got to finish her sentence as she was literally thrown up high, her screaming in actual terror rather than fun, all the while trying to hold a glare down at the laughing pyromaniac below her. She was caught by Natsu once again, and was about to spin her when Lisanna suddenly called out.

"You guys are out!" she exclaimed, stopping Natsu from what he was about to do. Lucy quickly let go and held a hand to her stomach, trying hard not to bring back the delicious food they ate earlier.

"What do you mean, 'we're out'?!" Natsu exaggerated.

"The song ended 10 seconds ago," Lisanna confirmed. "And everyone had already assumed the position. See?" she swept her hand in the air and the pair turned to look at everyone. Juvia was being carried by Gray piggyback style. Levy was being slung on one shoulder of Gajeel, who was grinning maniacally again. Jellal was struggling a bit due to Erza's 'dancing skills', but he managed to balance himself long enough. Ashton was carrying Lina bridal-style, and was also smirking when Natsu scowled in defeat.

"Damn it," he muttered. "I thought for sure we were gonna win!"

"With the way you've been throwing Lucy around, it's actually a blessing that you guys got out first." Gray deadpanned.

"Say that again, ice freak!" Natsu roared with a raised flaming fist. He was about to lunge at him, not caring at the moment that he was carrying someone, when a gentle hand circled around his arm. He whipped his head back and turned to see Lucy hugging him with her eyes closed.

"I am a bit tired," Lucy muttered gently. "Let's take a seat, Natsu. Please?" she asked. Almost instantly, the flames dispersed from his hand and he grinned.

"Sure," he said, kissing the top of Lucy's head. "We'll take a rest." He brought Lucy to the bar and they proceeded to watch the others in mild interest.

* * *

At the end of the game, Gajeel and Levy won, making the iron dragon slayer's words true. Gray and Juvia followed Natsu and Lucy at being out of the game earlier. Next was Lina and Ashton, because apparently Ashton couldn't resist holding the brunette's rear again, resulting in a power slap that sent the both of them tumbling to the ground. Jellal had gotten too dizzy from dancing with Erza, so he couldn't keep his balance when the newspaper was folded to half of what it was originally was.

Only Gajeel had the capability and advantage of holding onto his girlfriend with one hand and balancing himself on one leg. Mira rewarded the two of them by making them cut the cake and be the first to taste it, of course while acting like a married couple all the way.

After eating the cake, everyone went to the infirmary, where the guys decorated it heavily for tonight's surprise for Lucy. They were going to have a sleep-over; both the girls and the guys. Everyone had clothes prepared, and Mira was quick to add that she took the liberty of going to Lucy's house when she was away and 'borrowed' one of her pyjamas. Apparently they were planning this longer than the blonde had originally thought.

The beds weren't separated like before, plus the curtains to hide any patient had been removed and had been put in the storage room. And instead of beds, they just laid the mattresses down on the floor. Once everyone was in their pyjamas, they separated the group via gender. The guys were a little near the door, while the girls were at the far end to the right. It was to make sure that the guys wouldn't listen in to their conversations; no matter how much the guys had promised they wouldn't take interest. The dragon slayers' enhanced sense of hearing was enough boundaries for all of them, so they set it like that.

Lucy laid on her stomach, elbows propped up and hands cupping her chin. Beside her, Levy laid on her back while reading a small pocket book, eventually getting tired of the position and assumed the same position as Lucy had. Lina and Mira were sitting cross-legged as they chatted casually, while Erza, Lisanna, and Juvia tucked themselves comfortably between the large, fluffy pillows.

In the guys' end, it wasn't as quiet, nor was it that relaxing. Natsu and Gray had already gotten into a fight, both glaring at each other and pillows at hand. Gajeel was leaning on a wall as he watched the two with disinterest. Ashton and Jellal both sat cross-legged on the mattress, far from the two idiots with their eyes closed and trying to tune out the noise.

No one actually wanted to sleep yet, and they'd rather spend more time with their respective partners. It wasn't long before Ashton got impatient and decided to crawl to the girls' side of the room, spotting Lina immediately and smiling at her.

"Hey," Ashton said as he stood up and was now walking towards them. The brunette took notice of him and glared emerald-green eyes at him.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"What?" he asked back. "Can't I visit my favorite girl?" The look Lina had didn't change for a few seconds, but Ashton bit back a laugh when her cheeks puffed up, red as a tomato and she looked away quickly.

"Someone's blushing~" Mira pointed out, poking the brunette's cheek to further pinpoint her victim. Everyone started to coo at the two, making her blush even more.

"S-stop it, you guys~!" she exclaimed before pouting. "You guys are mean!"

"What's wrong with what we're doing, Lina-chan?" Levy asked innocently.

"Yeah," Lucy continued. "Ashton's been pretty nice lately…"

"Wasn't I nice before?" the man in question asked. He now sat down next to Lina, who was still looking away from him.

"I guess, but you're way nicer now compared to before." Lucy said. "And I think it's cute that you guys have little arguments like this every once in a while."

"Why not date?" Lisanna asked. "Wouldn't that be nice?"

"Juvia thinks it's a great idea." Juvia commented casually. Everyone nodded at the idea, even Ashton. The blue-haired man slung an arm around the brunette's shoulder and smiled softly.

"You heard them, right?" he whispered. "They think it's a great idea, so why not you?"

"I think she's just playing 'hard-to-get'…" Mira joked, giggling a little when she saw the girl stiffen up a bit under the man's arm.

"Is that it?" Ashton played along with the joke. "So if you're playing hard-to-get, I expect a great reward when I finally get you…"

"What reward…?" Lina finally asked, not sensing the mischievousness of the people around her. Ashton smirked, let go of her, and put a crooked finger under his lip, as if thinking of something.

"Well…" he said pausing a little. "How about a dozen kids…?" At that, every girl except Lina began a fit of giggling. Lina was bright red and flustered by this point. So, not seeing the point of arguing with them, she just sighed and went to lie down on Ashton's lap. Now it was his turn to blush when he saw the girl smile a bit.

"…I'll think about it…" she just muttered and closed her eyes. Every girl awed at her and started another fit of giggles while the blue-haired man stroked Lina's hair. All of a sudden, their peace was interrupted when Natsu came flying towards them with a pillow to his chest. He landed in the middle, just a mere inch away from Levy and Lucy, shocking them all a little.

"Natsu, are you okay?" Lucy asked worriedly. Natsu looked at the blonde, her honey-brown eyes filled with concern, but it was completely washed away when he grinned.

"Yeah," he said. "I'm fine." Lucy smiled a bit in relief at hearing that.

"Hey flame-brain!" Gray called from the other side. "You forfeiting already?" They could the slight arrogance in his voice, which got Natsu to sit up quickly and raise a fist.

"Just wait there, ice pansy!" he growled. He turned back to Lucy and grinned. "I'll be going." When she nodded, he began to race back to attack. But before he could, all the lights went out. The girls began to scream, startling each guy and making them race back towards them. The lights went back on a few seconds later, the others seemingly not affected by the outage. Gajeel was standing next to Levy, unsure of what he should do since the girl just screamed because she thought she wouldn't be able to finish her pocket book. Jellal was comforting the shocked Mira and Lisanna, while Erza asked him what just happened.

"Maybe it was just a reaction to something," Jellal assessed. "It could be anything. But we can't be sure. Since this whole place runs on magic, we can't say for sure."

"I see…" Erza said. "Everyone, are you okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine…" Ashton said as he held Lina close. She fell asleep and wasn't really alarmed, but he shook her up a bit just enough to stir her from her sleep.

"Okay," Mira said, finally calm again. "There's nothing to worry about now, so we can-"

"I'm not sure about that…" Lina muttered, cutting Mira off.

"What do you mean?" the white-haired bartender asked. Lina looked serious, as if she was going to fight someone.

"I don't…" she muttered. "I don't feel any magic. Nor do I sense any presence of life. It's the same with all of you."

"What?" Lucy asked. "How is that possible? Shouldn't you be able to tell that?"

"And we're right here, right?" Levy continued, slightly afraid. "So how's it possible that you can't sense any of us?" Lina nodded her head as she heard those words.

"It's not…" she said. "It's not possible that you have no life. I can only guess…"

"Something's blocking our magic…" Jellal continued. All eyes landed on his serious expression.

"What?" Natsu asked.

"Can't you feel it?" the blue-haired man asked. "When the power went out, it must be because of something attempting to block our magic. But since this guild is powered by a lacrima, and is still working, I'm only guessing it's blocking naturally born magic."

"But who'd be trying to do that to us?" Lisanna asked in worry.

"I don't know…" Jellal stated sadly. "But we need to keep our guard up."

"Okay." Gray, Natsu, and Gajeel said at the same time.

"No one's gettin' near us…" Gajeel smirked.

"With or without magic…" Natsu grinned maniacally.

"This should be fun… Whoever's tryin' to attack us at night is pretty weak." Gray commented.

"First things first," Mira said, standing up. "We should check if anyone's gotten in the guild." At everyone's nod, they all started to walk out.

They are all unaware of the cloud of darkness surrounding the guild, unaware of the dangers that they wouldn't know that would happen. Will the fairies shine a path to life? Or will they all be stepping in Death's Door?


	2. So It Begins

**Warning!** _Major Character Deaths; Original Characters; Slight Gore; Not for the faint of heart… _

_A/N: For those who were wondering why no one died in the first chapter, it's because it was the first chapter. XD I'm not gonna kill anyone off in the very first chapter! And besides, it's really hard for me to kill them, let alone think of any way to do it. XD_

_Anyway, onwards to the next chapter~!_

* * *

_**A Fairy Tail Fan Fiction**_

_Written by NewMusic098_

**A Not-So Happy Ending**

**Chapter 2:**

**So It Begins**

The group made it out of the clinic and was now at the center of the guild. All was the same; the furniture they used and the slight mess they made were still present. The only difference is that the lights of the halls were somewhat dimmer than usual. It doesn't take much to get used to it, but the ominous feeling surrounding everyone was eating away at their confidence. Little by little, no one was willing to move with the smallest doubt;

Who or what's trying to get them?

"I-I don't think this is a good idea…" Levy muttered while she leaned closer to Gajeel, seeking comfort from the Iron Dragon Slayer. The long-haired man draped an arm around her shoulders, but kept a serious and battle-ready expression, scanning the whole place as if anticipating any attacks.

"We have to," Natsu said, his face lacking that famous grin of his. "There's no telling what's out there, and we can't just stand here and let it do what it wants!"

"Natsu's right," Jellal said, acknowledging his words. "If we wait any longer, it might get more serious. We should get rid of whatever doubt we have and just focus on finding out if there's a threat or not."

After Jellal's little encouragement, everyone stayed silent. The few fleeting moments they spent in that silence was letting them calm down, perhaps long enough to continue on with finding this out. No one really knew what's keeping their magical powers down, but they certainly confirmed it now. Lina's ability to sense life had been cut off and Juvia can't turn herself to water like she normally does. This alarmed them all enough to think that someone or something was attacking them, but no one really confirmed that suspicion just yet.

"I'm going out." Lisanna suddenly said, turning all heads to her as she started to walk to the guild doors.

"But Lisanna," Mira said in worry. "You shouldn't go outside. What if someone attacks you?" The white-haired little sister turned to her and smiled softly.

"Don't worry, Mira-nee." She said. "I can protect myself. And if I can get help from outside, maybe we can figure this out." Mira still gave her a hesitating look, almost as if wanting to hold her hand in desperation, so she continued.

"I'll be fine," she insisted. "What's important now is getting through the night without any problems, so I'm going out. Okay?" She stayed firmly in her place, waiting for her sister's approval. With a shaky nod, Mira sighed at the girl.

"J-just, please be careful…" Mira whispered her voice almost cracking. She has no idea how to keep anyone safe right now. She can't use magic, and she can't fight like the others can physically without it. All she has are words that can strengthen their morals and soften angered and violent reactions of her teammates.

"I will," Lisanna said. She continued walking to the doors, keeping a watchful eye for any sudden movements. When she reached the door, she stopped and took a deep breath. Grabbing one of the handles, she slowly opened the door until she could see outside.

Her blue eyes kept a blank look as she stared at the dark streets of Magnolia. It was pretty late in the evening, and they themselves were preparing to go to bed before all this happened. It sent a shiver of fear up her spine, but she wasn't going to let the dark scare her. She was a proud Fairy Tail wizard, and when it comes down to it, a pretty decent fighter.

She took one step forward, her guard up expecting any kind of attack. But when no such thing came, she immediately started race walking out the guild. If there was going to be an attack, she didn't want to be the first to get hit. And there was no telling again that there would be an attack. All they had were their suspicions and doubts.

Of course that dissipated right at the moment Lisanna bumped into something solid and made her stumble backwards, landing on her behind with a soft thud.

"Ow…" she groaned as she rubbed the spot where she had been hit. After a few seconds, she blinked her eyes and stared back to the exact same spot she was going to. There was nothing there, but she had bumped into something. There was just open space, but she felt an object there not too long ago. Curiously, she got on all fours and crawled a little bit forward. She used her left hand to keep herself balanced while she used her right one to tap the space. Instead of touching nothing, she touched an invisible surface, forming ripples as it echoed a sound of a metal dome being hammered.

The bluenette's eyes widened and she started to stand up and run back to the guild, closing the door shut, tight, and locking it before rushing to the team. She was greeted with concerned faces, while Mira rubbed her back comfortingly.

"W-what happened…?" Lucy asked cautiously. A moment of silence occurred before Lisanna answered, and everyone could tell it wasn't the answer that they would like.

"… We're trapped."

* * *

"Trapped…?" Erza repeated. Lisanna nodded once, and kept her head low.

"I bumped into a barrier of some sort on the way out." Lisanna explained. "It's invisible, but anyone should be able to feel it."

"That must be the reason behind our magic being blocked out…" Jellal realized. "Strange…"

"It is…" Lina continued. "But who do you think would do this, a dark guild, maybe?"

"Maybe," Erza answered. "But personally, I think this one's a little too planned out if they wanted to start a war. And why today of all days…?"

Everyone fell to silence once again after that statement. They didn't know who was targeting them, but at least they knew enough that it was an actual threat, and it wasn't paranoia that was doing this to them. It would've been a shame if they all became crazy and ruin Lucy's birthday. Still, with the way things are going, they wouldn't have to do much to actually ruin it. The worst part of it was, they had no clue as to who would try to do this to them.

"Hey," Gray said, effectively breaking the tense silence. "Do you think anyone's gotten in already?"

"What do you mean, Gray?" Mira asked, holding her closed fist to her chest. Gray steered his eyes to everyone, stopping with each glance before sighing.

"What I mean is," he said. "If someone puts a barrier around us, wouldn't it be hard for them to attack us?"

"I still don't get it." Natsu said confusedly.

"That's because you're an idiot…" Gray muttered. But before Natsu could start a pointless argument, Lina stepped in with a hand raised up.

"So," she stated. "You're saying someone other than us is inside the guild?"

"Exactly," Gray nodded. "What's the use of threatening us like this if they can't even scratch us, right?"

"I think I get it now." Erza said, stepping forward. "So they sent a spy inside. Interesting…"

"But wouldn't that person be affected when inside the barrier like we are?" Levy asked, caution spreading over her words. "If there really is another person in the guild, then they won't be able to use magic, right?"

"Yeah," Jellal answered. "But we can't be too sure. If they know any magic to protect themselves from this barrier, they would've used it already."

"Well, what should we do then?" Ashton asked. Jellal lowered his head and cupped his chin. From the ground up, he steered his brown eyes to map out the entire guild, tilting his head from every which direction to familiarize himself with his surroundings. He hasn't been in the guild building for long, so he wasn't sure he knew every nook and cranny in this place.

"Does anyone have a map of this place?" he asked out loud.

"No," Mira answered. "But I could draw one. Lucky for me, I brought a Light Pen with me." She pulled out the magical pen from her dress and started to draw circles and words in the air. Jellal nodded to himself as he sees Mira's progress, and then turned to the others who were waiting for an answer.

"If we're going to find this spy or something, we need to split up." He said.

"What?" Lina asked. "I don't know if that's a good idea. I mean, in every horror book I've read, splitting up is always a very bad idea…"

"I-I kind of agree with Lina-chan," Levy said, raising her already shaking arm, only to be pulled down by Gajeel's iron grip. By the looks on his face, he doesn't agree with the plan either.

"Don't worry," Jellal assured. "We'll be going in pairs. Better to be safe than sorry…"

"It's done." Mira announced from behind. Everyone turned their eyes to the giant map of the Fairy Tail building. They were in the hall, which was at the center of the guild, south of the entrance and north of the kitchen. Inside the kitchen, there's a door that leads to the basement/game room. To the west, another entrance and a flight of stairs leading to the second floor was found. The east held another flight of stairs and halls for random doors and storage rooms. The north, excluding the kitchen, and going to the back was the pool.

The second floor held the north hall, where the infirmary was located, and both east and west wings, the former leading to another storage room and the latter locating the restrooms. Jellal was thoroughly impressed by the knowledge Mira had of the place, and didn't waste any time preparing a plan for them.

"All right," he said, turning back to them once again. "As I've said before, we'll split into pairs. Do I have to pick out your partners?"

"Nope!" Natsu answered, grabbing Lucy by her waist. "We've all gotten our partners right here…" Everyone had their eyes on a particular member, and Lisanna and Mira are sisters, so there's no need to ask if they're okay with just each other.

"Good," Jellal sighed. "Well, here's the plan. We're going to search for anyone or anything that might've entered the building during that blackout."

"We got that part already…" Gajeel muttered.

"I know," Jellal said, nodding once before continuing. "Well, I'll assign the spots where we'll be searching. Judging from the locations, there can only be several places that the perpetrator could've entered."

"Natsu, you and Lucy go check out the east wing of the 2nd floor." He said as he pointed to the pair.

"Got it," Natsu said.

"All right…" Lucy muttered, gulping down a little saliva while she clung to Natsu's shirt.

"Gray, you and Juvia check the pool area. They might have entered through the back." Jellal continued. The pair nodded, eyes fixed on the goal. As Jellal kept giving orders, the more nervous Lucy felt. She felt like the more serious the situation, the more their lives would be put to danger. If the attacker was inside the guild, they would get attacked any minute.

"And Erza and I will examine the barrier outside." Jellal finished. "All right, you've got your places. We need to finish this now."

"We got it," Ashton said. "This is getting irritating anyway…"

"Okay! Let's go!" Natsu chuckled. The rest of them nodded and began to head towards their set destination. The pairs that were going to the 2nd floor were Ashton and Lina, Natsu and Lucy, and Mira and Lisanna. Those on the ground floor were Jellal and Erza, Gray and Juvia, and Gajeel and Levy. It would take a lot of their bravery, determination and patience to find out if there was really a spy inside. Who knows, maybe someone was just playing a really nasty prank on them? Still, as Jellal said, it's better to be safe than sorry.

* * *

A comfortable silence despite the dire situation was brought down upon Natsu and Lucy the moment they were left alone. Lucy was feeling more secured when Natsu was around to protect her. Ever since that fateful day she confessed to him, -which she thought was weird since usually, the guys confess to the girls-, he had never left her side. They still act like best friends, but that made room for more intimate gestures. Like now, Natsu was holding the blonde's hand as they walked cautiously in the halls of the east wing.

"Hey Lucy," Natsu called her. She looked up to him and met onyx eyes.

"What is it, Natsu?" she asked.

"I was wondering," he said. "Does this force field thingy affect my sense of smell, too?" he asked.

"Huh?" Lucy asked back. "I don't know. Why do you ask?"

"I can't smell anything." He said. "I mean, I can't smell that far out anymore. But I can still smell you." He grinned. Lucy rolled her eyes, but didn't stop a small blush from creeping up her cheeks. Honestly, even in this kind of situation, Natsu could always find a reason to make her blush. They continued in more silence, and eventually reached the storage room.

"Why would Jellal ask us to check this storage room anyway?" Lucy asked now. Shrugging, Natsu slowly opened the door, still cautious about what's coming out or not.

"I don't know," he said. The moment he opened the door, the light of the moon illuminated the rest of the room, casting their shadows as silhouettes with the evening glow. Lucy's eyes widened a little when she saw a large window, almost a foot long on all sides with no bars.

"I guess this is why…" she muttered to herself. "Well, we should start searching now, Natsu."

"Okay." He said. "Uh, but what should we look for?"

"Anything suspicious…" Lucy said, crouching down and looking through some of the boxes. "If you find anything out of the ordinary or something that shouldn't belong here, you tell me."

"You mean like this?" Natsu asked. Lucy whipped her head to him, expecting to find a clue, but instead she saw a pair of black boxer shorts that she believed belong to Gray.

"N-not that!" She exclaimed in whisper. "That's not what we're looking for! Where did you get that, anyway?"

"Just found it." Natsu shrugged. He tossed the clothing in a random direction and proceeded to scrutinize some of the boxes inside. Lucy sighed and proceeded to walk towards the window. The view was, as expected, dark and dim. The only light were streetlights from afar and the moon. And although they were still trapped inside this barrier of some sort, she could still feel the evening breeze. It made her hair flow, and for a fleeting moment, she enjoyed the cool air that washed away some of her worries.

But the moment only lasted for a second, and as soon as Lucy thought she was calm again, everything went dark, literally. The light from the moon, the lights in the guild and from the streets; all of them suddenly disappeared from her line of vision. Upon confusion, she took a few steps back.

Not a single object could be seen, she can't even she her trembling hands now. All there was was darkness.

_'W-what's happening…?'_ she asked herself. She kept still, while still hoping to keep herself calm. And just when she thought the worst, the lights went back on. She blinked her eyes a few times to readjust her eyes from the light. When she looked around, though, her pink-headed partner wasn't in sight.

"N-Natsu…?" she called out. She received no response, and that got her curiosity. "Weird… I wonder where he went to…" When the blonde felt her heartbeat stabilizing again, she started to walk out of the storage room, calling out Natsu all the while.

* * *

"Ugh," Lina groaned as slammed her fist lightly on the wooden wall. "Where is he?"

Both she and Ashton were exploring the opposite side of Natsu and Lucy's destination, which was the west wing of the 2nd floor building when the lights went out. When it came back on, however, there was no sight of the blue-haired man.

"Ashton!" she called again. Getting no response for what seemed the third time irritated her already. They were having problems as it is, she didn't want to add a find-the-missing-idiot to her priority.

"Ashton Sevecrest, if you don't show up right this minute I'll…!" She was about to scream a threat when she heard a small creaking sound. It made her jolt from her spot and put her back against the wall. She made no move whatsoever when the door to the girls' lavatory opened by itself. It sent shivers down her spine, and she wasn't about to do something stupid.

_'Scratch that…'_ she scolded herself. Heaving a shaky sigh, she removed herself from the wall and walked towards the slowly opening door. She stopped when the door stop, opened wide and clear. The restroom was dark, even more without moonlight. She wasn't fondest when it came to darkness, and now she was alone and facing it dead-on.

"A-Ashton…?" she said after gulping down a little. "Ashton, is that you? You better be not trying to scare me…"

_'Goodness, did I just say that…?'_ she thought to herself as she frowned. Now fueled with slight irritation rather than full fear, she boldly took a step forward. When nothing responded, she continued forward, and turned on the light switch. The lavatory showed no sign of suspicion, or so she initially thought. She had always known to think twice about these kinds of predicaments, and now she needed to put that brain of hers to work. She needed to stay alert.

She inspected each cubicle, looking for anything suspicious at all, and found nothing. Now she was confused. A moment ago, this place was screaming suspicion. Now, it's silent and innocent. She was about to finalize that thought in her mind when she heard the door slam behind her. She whipped her head and ran to the door. She took hold of the handle and tried to pull the door open, but it felt like someone was holding the door tight on the other side.

Just then, she heard a series of bursts coming from the faucets. The pipes blew and now the water was quickly filling the room. Lina narrowed her eyes at the sight, thinking this was probably the most cliché thing a killer could do to a person locked in the bathroom. She let go of the handle and walked over to the set of sinks. Three out of five faucet handles flew off from their pipes and were spouting jets of water to the air, already covering about half an inch of the floor.

"All I need to do is release the flow slowly, right?" she asked herself. "That'll slow down the water from flooding the room…" She gave her idea a shot, since there was really no choice in the matter. She reached for the nearest sink and turned the handle a little. The steady flow of water was being drained down, and it was helping the pipe slim down.

_'Good…'_ she sighed in relief. _'Looks like my idea has a shot…'_ She rushed to the other faucet, hoping to do the same with the other. But as soon as she was near, the pipe blew and the faucet landed a direct hit to her head, making her stumble backwards with a small arch of blood trailing her way down.

The water began to take on a reddish pale color because of her blood, and the impact had caused her to become dazed for a little while. When she came to, she was already floating. She tried to stand up, but her feet couldn't touch the ground. That's when she realized, she was out for longer than she expected, and the room was already half-filled, but the water wasn't stopping at any moment.

"Darn it…" she muttered, still feeling a little dizzy. She swam towards the door, and banged on it furiously.

"Let me out!" she shouted. "I don't know who the hell you are, or if you're even there! Just let me out you, you… butt!" Childish as it may seem, she was already desperate. Her mind was still cloudy and hurting. She wasn't sure how long she was out for either, but she has to find a way out and tell everyone that there _is_ a killer on the loose.

Realizing that there was no use talking to a non-existent person, she decided to think of a way to get out of the room again. So far, four of the faucets had burst and now lying motionless on the watery floor. A few more minutes in here would probably make this a grave for her. Then suddenly, a quick, risky, and desperate idea came into mind.

She took a deep breath before diving down to get one of the faucet valves. She had heard that diving while suffering from head injury may result to shortness of breath, and possibly death if not treated soon enough. The brunette's wound was still staining the water with her blood. She was already putting herself in a lot of risk by doing this, but she doesn't want to die this way either.

She pushed herself deeper and deeper, until she reached the closest valve she could reach. Hurriedly, she rose up and took big gasps of air before swimming back to the door. The water was almost covering the door, but she made it just in time. Using the metal valve, she banged on the top hinge of the door repeatedly, hoping to break it loose so she can at least kick the top half open. With a repeated effort, she finally broke the hinge, but she couldn't force the upper half to bend just like what she thought. Now she was in trouble. If Lina were to get out, she had to get the bottom hinge as well.

Taking the risk once more, she dived down and reached for the other hinge. It took more effort than the last, and the lack of air was causing her hits to get less effective, but with one last hit, the hinge broke and the door flew open. The water flowed out like a flood and carried the weary brunette out of the room. She coughed out some of the water that managed to enter her lungs, and sighed heavily.

Still, this wasn't a call for comfort. If someone was watching them, then they might come back for her. The brown-haired girl tried to stand up, but her legs wobbled and she plopped back down on the wet floor. She decided to use the wall for support, clinging onto it as she trudged back to the center of the 2nd floor before going down. Hopefully, she'll encounter Ashton and this'll all be over.

The halls seemed to stretch infinitely when walking like this and the brunette was just barely hanging onto consciousness. She saw the outline of the hall, and she was about to turn to a corner where the center hall and the flight of stairs were found when someone grabbed her neck from behind and lifted her almost a foot up in the air.

Emerald eyes widened as the rough hand gripped on her throat, stopping all air from flowing to her lungs. Her hands made futile attempts to dislodge the person's single hand, but when it comes to aspects of physical strength, she knew she was beat.

"L-let me go, you jerk…!" she gasped. Surprisingly enough, the person did as such and dropped her on the floor once more. Lina coughed and gasped once more, touching her Fairy Tail mark located on her neck before turning her head slowly to glare at whoever tried to put an end to her.

But, as luck would have it, her time was already up. The last thing she saw was a long, metallic object aimed at her head before everything went from briefly red to black.

* * *

Ashton awoke from a groggy and forced sleep. Last he remembered, he was with Lina, now he was in who-knows-where. Shaking his head a little, he tried to focus his vision and examine his surroundings. He was in the men's lavatory, shoved sitting on one of the toilets. Purple eyes tried to make the most of the situation by making him try to remember what happened.

_'There was a blackout and…'_ The blue-haired man's head began to throb painfully, and much as he tried, he couldn't remember anything besides being with Lina. He touched his head, only to be surprised by the warm, liquid substance he felt. He saw his hand covered in blood, and he realized that it was the reason for his headache.

Standing up with little effort, he opened the door and stepped out of the small space. The room was still the same, except for the massive water leak present. The floor was flooded, and he may slip if he's not too careful. He was more than a little surprised when he saw a trail of blood melding with the water.

_'Is that…my blood?'_ he asked himself. He shook his head a little again and turned to the mirror. He looked fine, minus the minor wound on his head. He sighed. He really needed to fix that up. So, he ripped off the lower part of his shirt, wet it with water from the faucet, and held in on top of the wound. Now all he needed to find was Lina.

When Ashton stepped out of the lavatory, he saw the door of the girls' lavatory out of its hinges and a few feet away from its original position. He also noticed that the leak was coming from that room. He saw more traces of blood mixed with water, before landing his eyes on two pairs of wet footsteps. One was small enough for him to recognize it to be Lina's, but the other was unreadable. He didn't know whose footprints they were.

Suddenly, his eyes widened, and he started to sprint, tracing the footsteps as he went along. He realized that must've gotten attacked, and there was no time to idle around. When he turned to one corner, where the footsteps stopped, his eyes widened even more. Anger welled up in his chest and he punched the wall next to him as he let his throat rip out a restrained roar.

The first Fairy had fallen. How long will it be before the others follow in her fate?


End file.
